Efforts to establish a Creative Council under the Fiji Commerce & Employers Federation (FCEF) could be a reality by the end of the year.

The UN Informal Economies Recovery Project is working in collaboration with FCEF, in an initiative that will eventually allow creative business owners to engage in national policy discussions, including on COVID-19 recovery.

The process of establishing a Creative Council under FCEF is facilitated by Talanoa Consulting Fiji who organized the first meeting to map out the formal steps required.

“We have two councils that are predominantly micro and small business. They are the Young Entrepreneurs Council (YEC) and Women Entrepreneurs & Business Council (WEBC),” said Mr Kameli Batiweti the Chief Executive Officer for FCEF. “Therefore, based on past experience, we will just need to follow FCEF’s procedures to establish the Creative Council and we genuinely appreciate the support from partners to get us there.”

According to the ILO, the formulation of the Creative Council under FCEF could provide a good model for other Employer and Business Membership Organizations in the Pacific. With Tourism hit the hardest by COVID-19, many of the creative enterprises linked to the Tourism value chain - particularly those in the informal sector - continue to struggle.

The impact from Fiji’s second wave in 2021, as well as cyclones, has created many challenges for the creative industries. Having a national voice through the national private sector organization and accessing membership services will provide creative enterprises with a better opportunity to bounce back better, when tourism resumes.

In preparation for the establishment of the Creative Council under FCEF, the ILO, UNESCO and Pacific Community (SPC), through the UN Informal Economies Recovery Project, is supporting the formalization of the Fiji Islands Dance Association (FIDA) and Viti Association of Visual Artists (VAVA). Both these creative associations will lead the membership of the Creative Council, setting the foundation for other associations and creative enterprises to register and join the council.